Year 12 Modern - LIMP PAPER

LIMP PAPER? What am I talking about? Well, it's a way of remembering how Hitler rose to power, courtesy of John Clare, who has lots of helpful Germany resources online.
LIMP PAPER is an acronym for the main reasons that Hitler came to power, as follows:

Long-term bitterness (over WW1 and Versailles)
Ineffective Constitution (Article 48, proportional representation)
Money (finanical support for the Nazis from big business)
Propaganda (the Nazis were good at publicising themselves and their ideas)

Program (Hitler's 25-point program of ideas to 'save' Germany appealed to almost everyone
Attacks on other parties (the SA used violence to intimidate Hitler's opponents)
Personal qualities (Hitler was a mesmerising speaker who had a lot of power/charisma)
Economic Depression (Germany's economy collapsed and support for the Nazis soared)
Recruited by Hindenburg (after Bruning, Papen and Schleicher, the Pres gave Hitler a go...)

Check it all out here.

Year 12 Modern - Half-Yearly Advice

That time is upon upon us, Modern Historians...the half-yearlies start on Monday. I'm sure you will be spending the weekend preparing for your English exam, but History follows hot on its heels, so you should fit in some revision before doing some last-minute cramming on Monday night...

The exam will be in two sections:

1) World War One - a series of source-based sections, ranging from simple 1/2 mark questions where you select info from a source, to long, 8/10 mark questions which ask you to 'use the sources and your own knowledge' to discuss a feature of the War.

2) Weimar Germany 1918-1933 - a choice of two essays, both dealing with some aspect or aspects of Germany from the birth of Weimar (Nov 1918) to the beginning of Hitler's chancellorship (Jan 1933).

First, some tips based on what I saw from the last assessment:

1) Write more than one page for an essay! Leave plenty of time and try to squeeze out two pages. You are a lot more likely to get a pass mark.

2) ALWAYS mention ALL sources. they are presented to you for a reason - to assess your source analysis skills. Name the source, then briefly mention its PERSPECTIVE, how RELIABLE it is, and whether it is USEFUL.

3) When a question says 'use your own knowledge'...then do it! And plenty of it, too.

4) If in doubt about dates, or figures, then make them a bit more general. If you are not sure whether something happened in 1924, or 19925, then say, 'in the mid 1920s...'

5) If a question asks you to discuss two or more things, then discuss all of them, e.g. 'Describe the main social, political and economic issues...' means discuss all three of them, not just one. Be as obvious as starting each paragraph with something like, 'Germany faced many serious economic issues in the 1920s. The major one was hyperinflation...' etc.

6) Revise by writing a practice essay. The best way to do this is to compose a very general question which covers most of the topic, and then sit down and write it for 30 minutes, without consulting your notes. Afterwards, read through it, and then go to your notes to add or change any details. This way, you will have enough general info in your head to tackle any essay we throw at you - all you need to do is save some more facts in your head to modify your essay so that it fits the question in the exam.

A good general essay on Weimar might be something like:
"Describe the main issues faced by Weimar Germany from 1918 to 1933"
or "Evaluate how successful the Weimar Republic was as a democracy" (this one is harder)
Both essays cover the whole period and you could talk about anything.

A good general essay on WW1 could be:
"Describe the main features of the war on the Western Front"
or "Explain how Germany and Britain responded to the war on the Home Front"

Now, some links to help you:

This essay by Paul Kiem summarises the main events in Weimar until 1929. there are some activities that follow it.

This document by Stephen Tonge describes the period in more detail, and goes right up to 1933.

Finally, some practice essay questions. You can try these and email me them for comments/feedback.

From last year's HSC exam:

Assess the impact of tactics using new weapons in attempts to break the stalemate on the Western Front. (10 marks)

Account for the successes and failures of democracy in Germany in the period 1918– 1933. (25 marks)

From 2007's HSC exam:

To what extent was the failure of Ludendorff’s Offensive responsible for Allied victory and the German collapse? (10 marks)

From 2006's HSC exam:

Assess the importance of nationalism as a cause of the failure of democracy in Germany in the period 1918–1934. (25 marks)

Year 12 Ancient - Gods Poll

The Greek Gods poll has closed, and the most popular response (for the 8 of you who voted...I really need a more engaging poll topic!) was Athena (62%). Apollo and Zeus both rated at 37%. For the record, I think my response was Apollo. Come on, he was like the Brad Pitt of Ancient Greece!

Year 12 Modern - Weimar Poll Closed

So, according to the vast majority of you (72%), it was Gustav Stresemann who turned around Weimar Germany's fortunes in the late 1920s. I guess they didn't call it the 'Stresemann Era' for nothing, then...

New poll up soon.

Year 12 Ancient - Spartan Beliefs Powerpoint

Hi Ancient Historians. Here is the powerpoint on Spartan mythology and religion, which gives an overview of that topic:


Uploaded on authorSTREAM by tomgriffith


Or download the presentation here.

Year 12 Ancient - Work While I'm Away

Hi folks. As you know, I am away for the first three days of next week. I will be back Thursday to help you with any queries regarding the half-yearly.

I have left textbook/booklet work for you on Spartan religion. The most important thing for you to do is add some depth to the general powerpoint we did, by reading the relevant chapters in the Antiquity 3 textbook, and your Sparta booklets. Take notes on the following areas in particular:

1) Apollo, Poseidon and Artemis Orthia
2) The myths of Lycurgus and the Dioscuri
3) The religious roles of Spartan kings
4) The Karneia, Gymnopaedia, and Hyankinthia
5) The Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia, Amyklaion, and Menelaion
6) Funeral customs of Sparta

I will upload the powerpoint soon as well.

There will be a practice exam for you to do on Wednesday. Hand it in to be marked, and I will email you some comments before your half-yearly.

Year 12 Ancient - Lycurgus Poll

So, according to you guys, did Lycurgus actually exist? Here are the results:

15% each voted for either he was completely real, or he was an amalgam of more than one person

31% said he may have existed, but

36 % said he was a complete myth.

I'm with the last group, but remember - it's your opinion on this guy!

Year 12 Modern - Last Minute Exam Advice

I'm sure you'll all go great tomorrow, but just a final piece of advice...

When analysing sources in your exam (which you will do, as it is a source-based assessment) - make sure you refer to these three things:

1) Reliability - can we trust the source? Is it biased?

2) Usefulness - can we use the source? Does it give us good historical information? What information does it give us? Is it complete? What doesn't it tell us?

3) Perspective - whose opinion are we getting? Is it biased? Is it an official or unofficial perspective? Was it written at the time, or with the benefit of hindsight?

Year 12 Modern - Assessment Week 8

Modern Historians, your first assessment will be this Thursday, so we will be doing a spot of revision in class tomorrow. However, for your home study, here are some resources you could use:

Try your hand at some past HSC papers. The World War One sections are always at the beginning.

2007 paper 2007 source booklet
2006 paper

And finally, the relevant syllabus dot points. You may be tested on any or all of the points below.

World War One

1 War on the Western Front

– the reasons for the stalemate on the Western Front

– the nature of trench warfare and life in the trenches dealing with experiences of Allied and German soldiers

– overview of strategies and tactics to break the stalemate including key battles: Verdun, the Somme, Passchendaele

– changing attitudes of Allied and German soldiers to the war over time

2 The home fronts in Britain and Germany

– total war and its social and economic impact on civilians in Britain and Germany

– recruitment, conscription, censorship and propaganda in Britain and Germany

– the variety of attitudes to the war and how they changed over time in Britain and Germany

– the impact of the war on women’s lives and experiences in Britain

3 Turning points

– impacts of the entry of the USA and of the Russian withdrawal

– Ludendorff’s Spring Offensive and the Allied response

4 Allied Victory

– events leading to the Armistice, 1918

– reasons for the Allied victory and German collapse

– the roles and differing goals of Clemenceau, Lloyd George and Wilson in creating the Treaty of Versailles

National Study: Germany

1 Weimar Republic

– emergence of the Democratic Republic and the impact of the Treaty of Versailles

– political, economic and social issues in the Weimar Republic to 1929

Year 12 Ancient/Modern - The Polls Have Closed!

Well, the results of the first Modern and Ancient blog polls are in. OK, not many of you voted, but I'm going to publish the results anyway...

In answer to the question,

What do you think was the major problem faced by the Weimar Republic?

44% of you thought it was economic collapse. 33% thought it was the humilation of Versailles. The rest thought it was uprisings by the Right.

And, in Ancient, in response to the question

Which class of Spartans would you like to have been born into?

The vast majority (60%) said the perioeci , possibly because they had few rights but equally few responsibilities. Next was Spartiates with 26 %. Helots and Inferiors got one vote each...though I can't figure out why.

There'll be new polls up soon, plus there's one on Lycurgus for you Ancient Historians to have a go at.

Year 12 Modern - Weimar Germany 1924-29

Hi Modern students...here is the powerpoint we did this week on Germany 1924-29:


Uploaded on authorSTREAM by tomgriffith

You can download the powerpoint here.

I will post some assessment stuff up in the next few days, ready for next Thursday's exam.

Year 12 Ancient - Practice Essay Questions

The best way to revise your work is to try writing a practice essay. This will stimulate your memory as well as help you hone your essay-writing skills. Below are two practice questions. I'd love you to try writing one, which you can email to me for comments/advice. Or you could do it the old-fashioned way and hand it to me in class...

1) Explain the importance of the army in Spartan society.

2) Explain how the Spartan system of government operated.

Year 12 Ancient - What You Need To Study...

Hi guys, here is the powerpoint we did today listing the dot points you will need to revise for your first assessment on Tuesday.


Uploaded on authorSTREAM by tomgriffith

You can download the presentation here.

You can view the HSC syllabus for Ancient History here. The relevant pages are p.32 (Pompeii) and p.43 (Sparta).

Year 12 Ancient - Aristotle on Spartan Women

Following on from today's cloze passage on Spartan women, here is a primary source on the subject: Aristotle. The Athenian philosopher was not a fan of Sparta, and considered the country to be a 'gynocracy' - a state ruled by women.

I have added my own explanations of what Aristotle was saying, in red text and brackets, after each section.

Ancient History Sourcebook:
Aristotle: Spartan Women

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Again, the license of the Lacedaemonian women defeats the intention of the Spartan constitution, and is adverse to the happiness of the state. For, a husband and wife being each a part of every family, the state may be considered as about equally divided into men and women; and, therefore, in those states in which the condition of the women is bad, half the city may be regarded as having no laws. And this is what has actually happened at Sparta; the legislator wanted to make the whole state hardy and temperate, and he has carried out his intention in the case of the men, but he has neglected the women, who live in every sort of intemperance and luxury.

Sparta has created strict laws for its men, but not for its women. This defeats the whole purpose of the Spartan constitution. The women live immoral, luxurious lifestyles.

The consequence is that in such a state wealth is too highly valued, especially if the citizen fall under the dominion of their wives, after the manner of most warlike races, except the Celts and a few others who openly approve of male loves. The old mythologer would seem to have been right in uniting Ares and Aphrodite, for all warlike races are prone to the love either of men or of women. This was exemplified among the Spartans in the days of their greatness; many things were managed by their women. But what difference does it make whether women rule, or the rulers are ruled by women? The result is the same.

Spartan men, like many warrior races, are ruled by their women. This basically means that the women are in charge.

Even in regard to courage, which is of no use in daily life, and is needed only in war, the influence of the Lacedaemonian women has been most mischievous. The evil showed itself in the Theban invasion, when, unlike the women other cities, they were utterly useless and caused more confusion than the enemy. This license of the Lacedaemonian women existed from the earliest times, and was only what might be expected.

The women are cowards, and have cause nothing but confusion and defeat when Sparta has been invaded.

For, during the wars of the Lacedaemonians, first against the Argives, and afterwards against the Arcadians and Messenians, the men were long away from home, and, on the return of peace, they gave themselves into the legislator's hand, already prepared by the discipline of a soldier's life (in which there are many elements of virtue), to receive his enactments. But, when Lycurgus, as tradition says, wanted to bring the women under his laws, they resisted, and he gave up the attempt. These then are the causes of what then happened, and this defect in the constitution is clearly to be attributed to them. We are not, however, considering what is or is not to be excused, but what is right or wrong, and the disorder of the women, as I have already said, not only gives an air of indecorum to the constitution considered in itself, but tends in a measure to foster avarice.

The men did as Lycrugus demanded when peace came to Sparta. But the Spartan women refused to be told what to do. This is the main problem with the Spartan system, and it leads to greed for wealth.

The mention of avarice naturally suggests a criticism on the inequality of property. While some of the Spartan citizen have quite small properties, others have very large ones; hence the land has passed into the hands of a few. And this is due also to faulty laws; for, although the legislator rightly holds up to shame the sale or purchase of an inheritance, he allows anybody who likes to give or bequeath it. Yet both practices lead to the same result. And nearly two-fifths of the whole country are held by women; this is owing to the number of heiresses and to the large dowries which are customary.

Spartan greed has led to problems with land ownership. Some have large lands, some have very small ones. Because women are allowed to inherit land, they own 2/5 of Spartan property.

It would surely have been better to have given no dowries at all, or, if any, but small or moderate ones. As the law now stands, a man may bestow his heiress on any one whom he pleases, and, if he die intestate, the privilege of giving her away descends to his heir. Hence, although the country is able to maintain 1500 cavalry and 30,000 hoplites, the whole number of Spartan citizens fell below 1000. The result proves the faulty nature of their laws respecting property; for the city sank under a single defeat; the want of men was their ruin.

Thanks to these inheritance laws, Sparta's citizen numbers fell below 1000, despite its lands being able to maintain over 30,000 soldiers. Sparta's main reason for defeat - a lack of male citizens.

---

Source:

From: Aristotle, The Politics of Aristotle,: Book 2, trans. Benjamin Jowett (London: Colonial Press, 1900)

Year 12 Modern - Gustav Stresemann

Gustav Stresemann was considered perhaps the foremost politician of Weimar Germany. In fact, the years 1924-1929 are known as the 'Stresemann Era'. Many historians consider him the major force behind restoring democratic Germany after the chaotic early years of Weimar.

Stresemann won the Nobel peace Prize in 1926, for signing the Locarno Treaty, which guaranteed the borders of France, Belgium, and Germany.

Below is his biography, as listed on the Nobel Prize website:

Gustav Stresemann (May 10, 1878-October 3, 1929) was the son of a prosperous owner of a restaurant and tavern. In his early years he helped in the family business and, since he was a lonely boy, assiduously pursued his studies. After attending the Andreas Real Gymnasium in Berlin, Stresemann studied literature, philosophy, and political economy at Berlin and Leipzig. During these student days, he discovered that he had powers of leadership as well as a capacity for literary attainment. He wrote critical essays on the Utopia of Thomas More and the lyrics of D.F. Strauss, historical pieces on Bismarck (and later, on Napoleon), and acted as spokesman for his student association. His dissertation for his doctorate, an economic investigation of the bottled beer trade in Berlin, was both practical and theoretical, assessing the pressures of big business capitalism on the independent middle class of Berlin. [Full biography here...]

Copyright © The Nobel Foundation 1926

Year 12 Ancient - Helots

Below is an article by Jona Lendering on the Spartan helots. I have highlighted all of the important sentences in red.

Helots
article by Jona Lendering ©

Helots: class of unfree peasants in Spartan society, who may be defined as state-owned serfs.
In Antiquity, all humans were unequal. Citizenship was a privilege; magistracies were usually reserved for men; not everyone was allowed to serve in the army; the right to marry was restricted; not everybody was permitted to own land; certain professions were considered to be vulgar; and nearly every society had at least one class of people who were not their own masters. They were unfree. The idea that all members of society are equal for the law, have identical rights and are free, simply did not exist.
Spartan society was no exception to this rule. Like other towns in ancient Greece, all people belonged to different groups, and there was a class of unfree laborers, the helots. Typically, they were peasants, but they are sometimes found in other sectors of Spartan society (as servants at home, guards, and grooms), and although they were believed to be ethnically different from the Spartan elite, they could be emancipated and enter the world of the free-born.
None of this is unique, and ancient and modern authors have found it very difficult to define helotism, because it was not considered to be an ordinary type of unfree labor. Unlike the slaves in Athens, helots had families and communities of their own, and they were not private property. Therefore, Pausanias calls them "slaves of the commonwealth". Strabo of Amasia says they were "some sort of public slaves", and other authors say they were a category between slaves and free people. Perhaps the best approach is to leave the niceties for what they are, and simply define helots as a class of unfree laborers.
Probably, helotism is a very ancient category; it may even be a survival from Mycenean times. It has been assumed that when the Dorians conquered Laconia (the southeast of the Peloponnese), they reduced the native population to the status of helots. An argument for this theory is that the word heilôtes may be related to a verb that means "capture". On the other hand, the Dorian invasion is poorly understood, and it is perhaps unwise to use a poorly understood phenomenon to explain another poorly understood phenomenon.
Whatever the origins of helotism and its relation to slavery, it is reasonably certain that when the Spartans conquered Messenia in the southwest of the Peloponnese (probably in the eighth or seventh century), the native population became helots. They were forced to work on the land and had to give the fruits to the Spartans. However, their communities were left intact and they were allowed to have their own religious ceremonies. They still had an identity as Messenians, must have defined themselves as a repressed class, and hoped to liberate themselves. Writing much later, Xenophon stated that helots would gladly eat their masters raw, and several revolts of Messenian helots have been recorded.
In fact, the creation of a great number of helots in Messenia caused great problems and led to the introduction of a strict military discipline among the Spartans, who became a specialized military class. They had to be permanently on their guard, and it is not surprising, therefore, that their magistrates (the ephors) declared war upon the Messenians every year. If a member of the Spartan elite happened to kill a helot, it was not considered to be murder but an act of war. Other acts of violence and terror are recorded, and it seems that Spartan society as a whole suffered from a permanent fear of a helot rebellion. Probably, the helots outnumbered their masters by some seven to one.
On the other hand, there was also a more kind policy towards the helots, as if to appease them. Helots always could dream of being emancipated, and we know that the Spartan government did indeed sometimes liberate groups of helots. They were known as neodamôdeis and had the right to serve in the Spartan army, which also meant that they shared in the spoils. Former helots are also recorded as rowers.
The system collapsed in the fourth century. In 371, the Theban commander Epaminondas defeated the Spartans at Leuctra, and later, he invaded the Peloponnese, where he liberated the helots of Messenia. The helots of Laconia appear to have been emancipated later by the reformer kings Cleomenes III (235-222) and Nabis (207-192).

Year 12 Modern - Weimar Germany Revision

I'm sure you're after some fun revision activities this weekend, so here you go...

For a quick online revision activity on Weimar 1919-23, try this page.

Next, try this cloze passage on the Spartacist Putsch.

Then use this spidergram to cement your understanding of how Germans reacted to the Versailles Treaty.

Year 12 Ancient - Agoge Powerpoint

I have tried embedding the powerpoint this time...you should be able to click on it to view it.

You can access and download it here as well.

Uploaded on authorSTREAM by tomgriffith

Year 12 Ancient - Ancient Greek Pronunciation

In my struggle to pronounce 'agoge' correctly, I resorted to the internet for some advice. I found this useful set of hints here:

Hints on Pronouncing Ancient Greek Names

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Here are a few suggestions to help you pronounce ancient Greek names (and other ancient Greek words) in their usual Anglicized way (i.e., not in reconstructed ancient Greek pronunciation). This is at best a guide; to be sure you will have to look in a dictionary. For the most part, pronounce the name like an English word, but with the following exceptions:

• Final "e" is always pronounced: Athene = a-THEE-neh.
• "Ch" is pronounced like "k," never as in "church."
• "C" is pronounced soft (like "s") before "e" and "i" sounds, otherwise it's pronounced hard (like "k"). (This is quite unhistorical; in ancient times all "c"s were hard, but we are used to pronouncing "Caesar," "Circe," etc. with a soft "c.")
• The same applies to "g"; soft (as in "giant") before "e" and "i" sounds, hard (as in "gate") otherwise.
• "Th" is always smooth, as in "thigh," never rough, as in "they."
• You can pronounce the vowels as in English, but you will be a little closer to the ancient pronunciation if you pronounce them as in Romance languages (Italian, Spanish, etc.).
• "Ae" and "oe" can be pronounced like "e."
• General rules of accent:
  • If a name has two syllables, accent the first.
  • If a name has three or more syllables, then:
    • accent the second-to-last syllable, if it's long;
    • accent the third-to-last, otherwise.
  Unfortunately, the decision is determined by whether the syllable is long in Greek! However, if the syllable contains a diphthong or contains a vowel followed by two or more consonants, it is guaranteed to be long. Beyond that, you are on your own, I'm afraid.
• Examples: Aeschylus = ES-kih-lus or EE-skih-lus, Aphrodite = ah-froh-DI-tee, Herodotus = heh-RAH-do-tus, Thermopylae = ther-MO-pih-lee, Thucydides = thoo-SIH-di-des.

Source: Crosby & Schaeffer, Intro. to Greek, sect. 66.

So...agoge should be pronounced AH-GO-JAY according to this...
...but other sites have been telling me 'AH-GO-GAY'! If anyone tracks down the truth, let me know, please!

By the way - if you want to hear some Ancient Greek spoken (by a Harvard professor, not a Greek person...) try going to this page.

Year 12 Modern - The Weimar Constitution

The Weimar Constitution aimed to establish a Germany that was democratic, liberal, and progressive. Instead, it created a fragile democracy which lurched from crisis to crisis until 1923, and was then easily dismantled by Hitler ten years later.

Why did this democratic experiment fail?

This website lists the main clauses of the 1919 Weimar Constitution.

Go here for a word-fill exercise all about the Weimar Constitution (good for revision)!

Check out this Powerpoint presentation about how the constitution worked.

John Clare's website lists the main problems with the Constitution as follows:

Ineffective Constitution

The Weimar Constitution did not create a strong government:

	Article 48 of the constitution gave the President sole power in ‘times of emergency’ – something he took often.
	The system of proportional voting led to 28 parties. This made it virtually impossible to establish a majority in the Reichstag, and led to frequent changes in the government. During 1919-33, there were twenty separate coalition governments and the longest government lasted only two years. This political chaos caused many to lose faith in the new democratic system.
	The German states had too much power and often ignored the government.
	The Army, led by the right-wing General Hans von Seeckt, was not fully under the government’s control. It failed to support government during the Kapp Putsch or the crisis of 1923.
	Many government officials – especially judges – were right-wing and wanted to destroy the government. After the Kapp Putsch, 700 rebels were tried for treason; only 1 went to prison. After the Munich Putsch, Hitler went to prison for only 9 months.

Year 12 Ancient - The Agoge

I will be posting the Powerpoint on the Agoge in the next few days. Meanwhile, here is an article on the Spartan education system, written by Christopher Eger, and available here.

Agoge - Spartan Military Training

Sparta took twenty years to create the perfect Hoplite Warrior

© Christopher Eger

...In ancient Sparta military training was the rule, not the exception. Sparta was an independent---some say the most independent-- city state in ancient Greece. The citizens of Sparta were great believers in their state. Ancient Spartans placed the state above themselves and the state demanded soldiers to protect it. Those too weak to be soldiers were too week to be Spartans. When a young boy was born to Spartan parents the father would take the child to the council of elders. These old calloused and scarred veterans would look at the naked infant carefully for any birth defects or the slightest sign of weakness or sickness. If they judged the crying baby to be unworthy of carrying a Spartan shield it would be taken immediately to a nearby cliff off Mt. Taygetos and thrown over the edge. If it passed this first of many life tests then the young Spartan boy would be allowed to return to his parent’s home where he lived for six years. Then the agoge or military training would start When the young Spartan boy reached seven he was deemed too old to be coddled by his parents and was taken from them to live a military life for the rest of his existence. He was placed in a communal barracks with others his age, supervised by an older boy referred to as a Eirena who had respectively been the strongest in his class (and was himself undergoing something like officer training). For the next five years these Spartan boys were conditioned physically and mentally. They were educated- but only enough to count soldiers in a formation, read war sagas and sing and recite war poetry. . They were given rigorous strength and endurance training and physical conditioning through endless field and track events. They were taught wrestling and the art of ancient martial combat to make them lethal. They were fed -but it was a weak broth and in quantities only enough to exist. It was expected that the young starving boys would steal or otherwise find enough food to keep them strong. For this they would only be punished if caught and the lesson learned from this was how to look for food when none was available, a skill that would be needed in the future when occupying a village that had been sacked and abandoned. Discipline was the word to live by, with terrific punishments meted out if caught performing the most minor infraction. At age twelve the lean and hungry boy was taken from the barracks and made to eat, live and sleep in one garment with no shoes under the open sky for one year, exposed to the beasts and the weather. This yearlong exercise taught survival and fieldcraft skills that he would need when deployed fighting abroad. From age thirteen until he reached what was considered manhood at twenty the Spartan child played very very serious war games. These games often left the contestants dead or injured and would include armed invasions on Messenian agricultural slaves called helots and other non Spartans living nearby. These war games taught small unit tactics, raids, reconnaissance and surveillance, and the art of the ambush. When age twenty was reached the Spartan boy was seen as a solder and had thirteen years of the hardest military training yet devised under his belt. For the next ten years he would still live in barracks as part of the standing army and only at age thirty were they allowed to marry and as a full fledged citizen, reproduce and achieve public office. It was only then that they were granted the privilege to live in their own house and not in barracks. This superbly trained Spartan soldier would still remain in the army no matter where he lived until age sixty when they were allowed to retire. -----That is, if they were still alive.

Year 12 Ancient - Spartan World Website

I discovered this rather useful website today, put together by a guy called Paul Houston, on all things Spartan. It is a little fiddly to get around, but there are some good summaries of the main themes we cover. Check out the section on the two Spartan kings.

There is also a great glossary of Spartan terms on the site.

Year 12 Modern - Newspaper Article on Hitler

This is an article from 18 February's Independent newspaper, on Hitler's personal habits. Not quite something we cover in the syllabus, but it makes for interesting reading...

Adolf Hitler's "uncouth" personal conduct, including biting his nails during meals, have been exposed in secret intelligence papers discovered in an unknown house in the South West.

The documents paint a picture of Hitler based on information from one of his wartime aides, who describes the Nazi leader as a solitary man "of extremely few but intense emotions" and "shocking" table manners.

The account by the unknown German officer, who kept the war diary at the Wolf's Lair military headquarters and dined with Hitler at least 30 times, form part of an end-of-war intelligence report, which is to be sold at auction at Ludlow Racecourse in Shropshire next month.

According to the informant, simply referred to as Lieutenant Colonel PW, Hitler "ate prodigious amounts of cake", which contributed to a "digestive disorder", and lost himself in thought during meals.

"Hitler eats rapidly, mechanically - for him food is merely an indispensable means of subsistence" he wrote.

"Quite often Hitler will sit there throughout the entire meal, turned to his own thoughts, seemingly without listening to the talk going on around him.

"However, he does follow the drift of the conversation vaguely, to him the conversation seems to have the effect that music has on others; it stimulates his thoughts and relaxes him."

Dated May 1945 - the year Hitler died - and marked "must be destroyed within 48 hours of reading", the report said the Fuhrer spoke "in a mellow baritone, without that raucous, unpleasant stridency of his public speeches".

But it added: "At the table and in his speech he shows many facets of his rather uncouth behaviour. He abstractedly bites his fingernails, he runs his index finger back and forth under his nose, and his table manners are little short of shocking."

Hitler also preferred stewed vegetables and fruit to meat, herbal tea to coffee and banned smoking in his presence, according to the informant.